In Maha reunion, Raj & Uddhav share stage at rally after 20 yrs

Estranged cousins Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray united on Saturday after a political separation of 20 years at a public rally in Mumbai, with the junior sibling hitting out at the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra over trying to impose the controversial three-language formula.

“What Bal Thackeray could not do, what many others could not do, Devendra Fadnavis did — brought us together,” said Raj Thackeray on stage. “You may have power in the Vidhan Bhawan, we have power on the roads,” he said.

The cousins addressed a rally titled “Awaj Marathicha” (Voice of the Marathi), jointly organised by the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), marking the first time since 2005 that the two estranged leaders shared a stage.

The ruling Mahayuti coalition’s recent rollback of a controversial policy mandating Hindi as a third language in Maharashtra’s primary schools served as the trigger for this show of unity by the Thackeray cousins.

Both Uddhav (64) and Raj (57) had strongly opposed the proposal, and the rally is being positioned as a “victory” for Marathi linguistic identity.

“Where did you get this three-language formula from? This came only from the Centre. Today, in the high court and the Supreme Court, everything is in English. It is not there in any other state. Why only in Maharashtra? When Maharashtra awakens, you see what happens,” Raj said.

With the BMC elections approaching, the move is being seen as more than just the estranged cousins coming together for a cultural protest — politically crucial.

“Hindi is just a 200-year-old language. Try putting your hands on Mumbai or Maharashtra, you will see what happens,” Raj warned.

“People should be able to speak Marathi, no debate on this. If somebody does drama, they must be slapped. However, there is no need to hit people randomly,” he said.

Raj was apparently hinting at a recent incident where some MNS workers had slapped a shopkeeper reportedly for not speaking in Marathi.

“There will be no compromise on the Marathi language,” Raj said.

The last time Raj and Uddhav appeared together in public was during the Malvan Assembly byelection campaign in 2005. At that time, the Shiv Sena was still a united entity under the presence of Bal Thackeray.

Shortly after that campaign, Raj left the Shiv Sena. In November 2005, in an emotionally charged press conference at Shivaji Park, Raj had announced his resignation from the party his uncle had founded. “All I had asked for was respect. All I got was insult and humiliation,” he said, stopping short of directly naming his cousin Uddhav.

Meanwhile, addressing the rally, Uddhav, on his part, took a softer stance and began his speech with a quip.

“After so many years, Raj and I met on stage. The problem is, he called me ‘respected Uddhav Thackeray’. So I will also say, ‘respected Raj Thackeray’,” said Uddhav.

“Everyone who is here has forgotten the party division for Marathi. One thing is clear, we have removed the distance between us. We have come together, we will stay together,” Uddhav said.

“Mumbai was our right, we fought and got it. We have to expose the BJP’s “one nation, one election” idea. Slowly, they want to make everything one. Hindu and Hindustan, we agree but we won’t allow Hindi. We made Marathi compulsory, we had to do it,” he said.

India